Astronomy Blogs & Websites

Courses in Astrophotography. Links Amateur Organisations.

Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO) Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers of Japan (ALPO Japan)
The beautiful 3D map of space that plots our nearest galaxies - and reminds us how tiny Earth is. French researchers have created 3D representations of what our local universe looks likeIt centres around the Milky Way and Andromeda but extends up to 3,000 million light years awayBy plotting the universe, astronomers can learn more about how galaxies form By Victoria Woollaston Published: 16:56 GMT, 14 June 2013 | Updated: 16:56 GMT, 14 June 2013 We may soon be able to virtually explore our local universe in the same way we explore Earth - thanks to a new map of space that plots the location and flow of our nearest galaxies.

The Cosmography of the Local Universe was created by Helene Courtois from the University of Lyon and a team of researchers.
Astronomy News. Can humanity cope with long-term space travel? Scans reveal damage to brains and eyes in astronauts. MRI tests on travellers to International Space Station uncover effects on eyeballs and brain connectionsMission to Mars may not be possibleHumanity's ability to get to and settle on another planet may also be a non-runner By Eddie Wrenn Published: 10:57 GMT, 13 March 2012 | Updated: 16:20 GMT, 13 March 2012 Brain scans of NASA astronauts who have spent more than a month in space have revealed damage to their eyeballs and brain tissue.

The research may have long-term implications for long-term space journeys, hypothetically preventing us from spreading through-out the solar system and beyond.
Nasa NuStar telescope dropped from plane: Rocket powered device soars into space. By Eddie Wrenn Published: 08:39 GMT, 13 June 2012 | Updated: 06:50 GMT, 14 June 2012 NASA has launched its latest X-ray space telescope on a two-year hunt for black holes lurking in the heart of the Milky Way and other galaxies.

The telescope was launched by a rocket released from a carrier aircraft that took off from the remote Kwajalein Atoll, a horseshoe-shaped island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The telescope then separated from the rocket as planned and unfurled its solar panels as it orbited about 350 miles (563 kilometers) above the Earth. NASA chose to air-launch the mission because it's cheaper than rocketing off from a launch pad.
Guide to Space. Saving space science – do you Uwingu?

Space science is in a tight spot today.

Much of it is funded by NASA and NSF, and both are facing very large cuts in the 2013 US budget. So what’s a space and science enthusiast to do?
Night Sky Constellations Naming History. There are 88 officially recognized constellations in the sky, and these astronomical patterns have a fascinating and long history.

Forty-eight of the constellations are known as ancient or original, meaning they were talked about by the Greeks and probably by the Babylonians and still earlier peoples. After the 15th century, with the age of the great discoveries and worldwide navigation, the southernmost parts of the sky became known to man and had to be charted. Furthermore, across the entire sky were large gaps filled chiefly with dim stars between them. In more recent times people have invented the modern constellations to fill up some of these spaces. In our current evening sky, roughly between the bright star Capella and the Big Dipper’s bowl are two examples of modern constellations.

10 popular misconceptions about astronomy explained. With the return of the brilliant planet Venus to our evening sky, I'm reminded of an amusing anecdote related by a good friend of mine, George Lovi, a well-known astronomy lecturer and author who passed away in 1993.

One night, while running a public night at the Brooklyn College Observatory in New York, the telescope was pointed right at Venus, which was displaying a delicate crescent shape at the time. Yet, one student gazing through the telescope eyepiece stubbornly insisted that he was really looking at the moon. When George pointed out that the moon wasn't even in the sky, the student replied, "So what?
The Hubble Website. Bernard Lovell who founded Jodrell Bank Observatory dies aged 98. By David Wilkes Published: 15:16 GMT, 7 August 2012 | Updated: 07:53 GMT, 8 August 2012 Sir Bernard Lovell, celebrated physicist and radio astronomer, who invented the Lovell Radio Telescope, in 2007 Sir Bernard Lovell, the man behind the Jodrell Bank Observatory, has died at 98.

A new study gives hope for the possibility that many super-Earth planets orbiting distant stars have exposed continents rather than just water-covered surfaces. Continue reading "SuperEarths with Exposed Continents Boost Chances for Extraterrestrial Life" » In 1980 and 1981 NASA's Voyager 1 and 2 space probes passed for the first time over the planet Saturn, located 1,500 million km from the Sun. Among their numerous discoveries they observed a strange, hexagon-shaped structure in the planet's uppermost clouds surrounding its north pole.
Mystery over the giant cosmic explosion of 774AD, which has left absolutely no trace - except deep within the rings of two cedar trees.

By Eddie Wrenn Published: 12:10 GMT, 4 June 2012 | Updated: 16:39 GMT, 4 June 2012 The clues are in these rings: The rings capture microcosmic traces of particles in our skies - and tell us an explosion occurred It is a mystery which is truly beyond even Sherlockian scale - a cosmic explosion which left no trace behind except deep within the bark of two cedar trees.

Your Age On Other Worlds. Looking at the numbers above, you'll immediately notice that you are different ages on the different planets. This brings up the question of how we define the time intervals we measure. What is a day?
Astronomical Society of the Pacific: Activities With Astrology. Introduction These activities help students to understand the difference between science and pseudoscience by investigating some of astrology's claims. Letting students have a good discussion can be very effective.
Space - Astronomy and Exploration. Radio Waves from Brown Dwarf Discovered. An artist's impression of a brown dwarf similar to J1047+21.

Using the radio telescope at Arecibo, Puerto Rico, a team of astrophysicists from Penn State have discovered radio emissions from a brown dwarf in the constellation Leo. 33.6 light years away, this ultra-cool star, named J1047+21, is only 5 times hotter than Jupiter. Penn State astronomers using the world’s largest radio telescope, at Arecibo, Puerto Rico, have discovered flaring radio emissions from an ultra-cool star, not much warmer than the planet Jupiter, shattering the previous record for the lowest stellar temperature at which radio waves were detected. The team from Penn State’s Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics and the Center for Exoplanets and Habitable Worlds, led by Alex Wolszczan, the discoverer of the first planets ever found outside our solar system, has been using the giant 305-meter (1000-foot) telescope to look for radio signals from a class of objects known as brown dwarfs.